Marketing Principles

INTRODUCTION

Marketing principles is an important tool to optimize the market performance and it helps in understand the existing products and as well as motivate to launch new products in market. Ben Sherman is the global lifestyle brand company and it expands its business in more than 35 countries around the world. Company achieved global growth and high profile in music and fashion. The present report describe about the marketing mix, its elements and benefits of marketing oriented approach. Report articulated the changes come in product taste and explained the Ben Sherman's marketing strategy.

TASK 1

LO 1.1 Marketing Process

Target Customers stand at central of the marketing process. Define successive marketing includes identify the needs of customers; deliver right products to customers when they want to purchase at right price. The marketing process in which activities embrace analyzing market opportunities, select target market , develop successful marketing mix, and manage effectively marketing effort to get result in significant manner (Anandan, 2009). Marketing process is one type of strategic plan it contains company overall mission and objective. Marketing plays vital roles to complete that objective in well planned manner.

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SWOT Analysis

Strengths

Firm has globally recognized brand

It offer good quality products to customers

Effective distribution channels

It has high reputation

Reputed company accepted pricing strategies

Weakness

More investment are require for its own store

It has limited amounts stock

Processing cost charger by company is relatively high

Discount offer by firm may reduce its profitability

Opportunity

The fashion industry is on growing phase and it is Gaining momentum

Reputation of firm is increased day by day

It gets opportunity of sponsorship in London Olympic Games.

Threats

Competitors offer similar kinds of product

People are spending less due to downturn in economy

New advertising campaign are launched by other close competitors

LO 1.2 Benefits and costs of a marketing orientation for organization

Marketing orientation approach is used to identifying and meeting the needs or wants of the consumers effectively. Build and maintain core capabilities it is necessary for the firm to adopt market oriented culture. Service and customers satisfaction, quality of development and develop new innovative products are necessary market oriented activities for successful market oriented activities. Get success in business requires competitive advantage that helps in understanding of buyers' needs. Inter functional coordinating mechanism are used to create customer value compare to other rivals (Dooley and Iverson, 2012). Ben Sharman Company focused on understands the customer’s behavior that helps them to take efficient business decisions. Market orientation pricing describe with helps of different types of approaches like:

Market penetration: Firm in initially put low price of new products to penetrate large amount customers towards products and enhance their sales.

Market skimming: Reputed Company make it unique position in market by charging high price on new products and get high revenues from the product.

Premium pricing: Product that offers by Ben Sherman has unique and exclusive features with premium price and it command over it.

Economy pricing: In this approach cost of marketing and manufacture are kept minimum for its basic products. Marketing advantages, long term profitability, concentration on production and strategy are other benefits of such approach.

TASK 2

Environmental scanning in a business is used to explore the possible effects of external forces and conditions that are require for organization survival and growth in market.

Political Factor: It affected by the numerous policies make for fashion industries. Political environmental are favorable to Ben Sherman Company because good trading policies helps it expand business in more than 35 countries. Seasonal trends hitting low in summer and higher in winter month (Ivy, 2008).

Economic Factor: Reputed Company continually focuses on increasing export rate and focused on US economy. Economic condition are good employment rate has risen and export rate are increase. It generates employment for many people throughout the world.

Social Factor: Fashion industry treat according to changes comes in purchasing behaviors of customers. Demographics, lifestyle, trends, and consumer attitudes are considering in this. Establish firm produce wide range of products to fulfill the demands of customers in society.

Legal Factor: Ben Sherman takes the advantage of market and better competes with their core competitors by follow ethical standards in business and enhances the contribution towards increase ecological efficiency.

Technological factors: It adopts new techniques and tool for development and focused on inventions. Company uses latest technology to reap the market benefit of competitive environment. Patents, licensing and information access technology would be helpful.

Demographics: Ben Sherman's target market of customers which have similar needs such as age, gender or lifestyle. E.g.: If any person likes fashion and he may be willing to spend money on top brands that deliver the quality and image that he want by company.

LO 2.2 Segmentation criteria follow by Firm

Dividing a wide target market into different parts of customers is called Market segmentation. Market is segmented on basis on homogeneous needs and same characteristics of customers such as demographic like age, gender etc. There are different criteria to segment a market are described as follow:

Geographic segmentation: Reputed firm create segment of market ob basis of countries, reason, states, language and many other types. Ben Sherman gives preference to customers changing behavior and changes their products according to needs of them. It offers the facility of interchanging to the marketers (Martin, 2009).

Demographic segmentation: These factors categorize market into different type’s basis on age, gender, education and income level. Basis on such criteria firm fulfill their customers’ demands. It has capability to design, sourcing and marketing with maintain diverse portfolio of them in well planned manner. High profile musicians, models and actors promote company brands to attract them towards products.

Psychographic segmentation: Customers categorize on basis on their interests, opinions and actions. It is very helpful for company to make a strategy considered preferences and lifestyle of targeted consumers. Life style is the factor includes purchase decisions and high involvement of products understanding customer life cycle and helpful for company to making promotional mixes and product lines.

Behavioral segmentation: Basis on their knowledge, attitude and their response towards products considered. Firm use effective promotional techniques to enhance the brand awareness throughout the globe and penetrate large amount of customers towards product (Smith, 2008).

LO 2.3 A targeting strategy for a selected product/service

Segmenting the market comes under targeting strategy. Select the suitable market for products and offer products offer in every segment. It operates its business in 35 countries and it has worldwide lifestyle brand. Ben Sherman follows product-oriented or market-oriented strategy to occupation of market share. Variation in product range reflects different groups of customers. Fierce competition exists in fashion industries forced company to refresh its product ranges. Reputed firm better compete with their rivals adopt cost based pricing and market-oriented pricing techniques. Reputed firm promotes its products by participation in fashion events, music events and through celebrity’s appeal (Ben Sherman, nt.d).

For effective targeting customers firm create brand image on customers' minds over and against their competitors. Company use three distributional channel for products includes own stores, independent fashion stores and department stores. It offer facility of interchanging and then facilitates marketers to recognize products on basis on their needs.

Purchasing habits of individuals or groups could be analyzed with helps of Buyer behavior of customers. It includes the decision making, perception and desire. Learning theory model, economic model, psychoanalytic model and information processing model are used to understand the buying behavior. Company creates its brand image and loyalty by providing effective services to their customers (Wise and Sirohi, 2005).

Reputed firm increases awareness about products and enhance customers desire to purchase the products. Firm has limited control over magazine advertising and uses independent media to reach wide audience easily. Consumer behavior affected through the services offer by Ben Sherman like direct mail, exhibitions or events, sales and promotion activities. These kinds of promotion can be more cost-effective and give more measurable response rates.

High class of people attract by company through diverse its product portfolio and licensed lifestyle brands. Ben Sherman’s used marketing strategy to contract with musicians, models and actor. Those high class people influence customers and change their attitude towards buy products brands. Through changes in musical taste firm enhance the growth of brand. Attractive advertisement is used by firm and increase awareness of products.

LO 2.5 New positioning for a selected product/service

Ben Sherman develop the products which are medium-price range and easily identifiable by their style and quality. Marketers create a distinct impression in the consumer’s mind by successful positioning of products.

Product: Reputed firm creates products basis on market wants. It focused on product-oriented or market-oriented strategy. Company adopted clear segmentation strategy to attract various groups of customers. It refreshes its product ranges and adopt shorter product life cycle to maintaining long lasting market (Proctor, 2014).

Price: Establish firm use cost based pricing and market-oriented pricing to compete with other rivals. It offers high quality styled products with medium price range brands.

Place: Ben Sherman's products are highly limited into three distribution area includes own stores, independent fashion stores and department stores. It provides unique experience to customers to buy the products. Internet is the new approach adopt by the company to reach great height of development. Other facility offer by reputed brands are different stores is interchanging and marketers to recognize their products whenever needs (Lilien, 2013).

Promotion: Above the line and below the line promotion techniques use by company to deliver high quality product as compare to other strong competitors. Other promotion technologies used by company are participations in fashion events and music events and sponsorship.

TASK 3

LO 3.1 Products are developed to sustain competitive advantage

Ben Sherman must create an upper edge over other rivals by taking competitive advantage through market research and new product development.

Different kinds of activity taken by the company to gain competitive advantage over others are:

Improve the product and service quality: Company creates differentiate through improvements in the products and services.Ben Sherman creates good quality of products and unique in feature wise. By gaining in depth insights of customer portfolio, firm improves quality of products (Henley and Caemmerer, 2011).

Offer better customer service to customer: To gain competitive advantage over its competitors better quality services offer by company to its customers. Satisfy customers so they remain loyal with the company.

LO 3.2 Distribution is arranged to provide customer convenience

In global era, customers choose brands that are good in quality and offer convenience.Distribution channel are selected basis on element of the marketing mix. Decision will be taken by company to attract mass customers market through as many retail or wholesale outlets.

Small numbers of outlets are offers to customers with high services. Ben Sherman use selling effort by attractive packaging its product those are suitable by the storage and physical handling systems (Chikweche and Fletcher, 2012). Goods are transferred from one place to the other in effective manner that reduces the gap between the producer and the consumer. It motivated to large-scale production and enhances their specialization.

LO 3.3 Prices are set that reflect an organization’s objectives and market conditions

Ben Sherman uses different types of pricing strategies during selling goods or services in market. If they have an objective of increasing their market share then in that situation they have to focus on the reasonable pricing strategy. It will attract the attention of customers and they will be in position to increase their sales as well. Further the company is required to focus that the customers should get value on their investment. Fashion brands demand the quality and fair price at same point of time and it must be taken into special consideration by the company (Adcock and Ross 2001).

The promotion category focuses on strategies that provide information to consumers about its products. Ben Sherman use different promotional activities are described as follow:

Personal selling: The Company can deal with their high class customers through personal selling or direct marketing. It will help them to gain the competitive advantage and they can convince them very easily (Longenecker, 2006). Through personal selling the company can explain the features of their apparels effectively and it could show it expediency in the customer acquisition and making the personal relationship with customers.

Sales promotion: With the help of this the company people can launch some offers or discount options which will boost up their sales immediately. The customers will show their interest into the products of the company and buy them. However this type of strategy is effective for the shorter period of time but still the organization start to exchange some relationship with customers. They will get in touch and product quality can make them loyal or regular customers (Borden, 2006).

Advertisements: Above two discussed elements of promotional mix activities are effective and generate results but without proper advertisements none of the promotional activity can be treated as complete activity. There are different types of advertisements and company can choose as per their convenience and objectives. If company has objectives to make people aware about the quality of products then they should rely on advertisements.

LO 3.5 Additional elements of the extended marketing mix

The marketing mix is the combination of marketing activities. It includes people, physical evidence and process which are describe below

People: the people who are associated with the company must be innovative and creative. They understand the fashion and needed to bring regular innovation in their products. It will help the company to boast on their product range (Martin, 2009).

Process: the process of delivering or distribution channel must be effective and there is requirement of avoiding the element of delay.

Physical evidence: It represents the store of the company that must be vibrant and attractive to gain the attention of customers. Further the brand name or logo also lies under the category of physical evidence.

TASK 4

4.1: Illustrate differences in marketing products and services to businesses rather than consumers

Generally there are two ways of marketing business to business or business to customers. Both these type of marketing areas have their own nature and characteristics. It is to acknowledge that the cited organization has to understand that in these two markets they have to adopt different style of marketing just to gain the competitive advantages. First of all it is required that in B2B the company need to focus on investing hugely on the promotional campaigns. As they business to business marketing can be easily through direct marketing. It is best and appropriate tool which ensure the high level of connection among the clients and company (Ivy, 2008). Further the importance of direct marketing is that with the help of this the company can gain the attention of customers and they can convince them very easily. On the contrary the B2C market is highly scattered and it is impossible for organizations to spread one format of promotional campaigns. They have to have adequate amount of promotional strategies combinations and it could be beneficial for them at very large scale. In order to influence them the company has to rely on advertisement or other form of promotions. Other than in business to business marketing the organization can fluctuate their pricing strategy based on the lot size or the amount of purchases? Other side in business to customer’s price remains the same until n unless there is no offer or discount coupon has been launched by the company (Anandan, 2009). Thus these are very common differences in marketing products and services to businesses rather than consumers.

4.2: Show how and why international marketing differs from domestic marketing.

International marketing is completely different than the domestic marketing. The very first difference is that it is more complex than the domestic marketing. In international marketing the organizations have to understand the social and cultural environment as it can put its impact at their organizational activities. Further it is also clear that the impact of global business environment is very huge on the business strategies of the company. In domestic marketing company has better understanding about the various aspects of market. Like segmentation and targeting is very easy in domestic marketing as compare to the international marketing. On the basis of proper segmentation the change in the product range can be afforded by companies. On the contrary in international marketing there is huge requirement of giving the proper consideration on the segmentation and positioning process as the diversity is very high. Apart from this it is essential in international marketing to make proper alignment with the political as well as economical environment (Rosenbloom and Dimitrova, 2011).

If business entities failed to do so then it can hamper their operational and functional efficiency. Ben Sherman has to make their product range and complete mix on the basis of global business environment which is completely different than the domestic marketing. Further the global level events organizing and sponsorship is another factor which is mostly available in the international marketing.

CONCLUSION:

With the help of above report it can be concluded that without appropriate marketing strategies none of the organization can sustain in this competitive era. This report is helpful with a view of gaining the proper understanding of the various aspects of marketing like segmentation or product development process. Overall this study has huge expediency in enlightening the view point about various marketing concepts and practices with respect to Ben Sherman.

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